Journey Into Mystery 6
by D
Summary: Loki is back for revenge. 'Nuff said


Lady Thor

A Marvelous Tale Told in the Mighty Marvel Manner!

November 10, 1962

The Vengeance of Loki!

In the mythic realm known as Asgard, there was presently an undercurrent of fear that dominated the actions of those that lived in that wondrous realm. From the Rainbow Bridge to the mighty golden spires, the gods and goddesses that made up the populace felt an evil charge on the wind.

Loki, god of evil, was not the cause this time. After his defeat at the hands of Lady Thor and his exposure behind Thrud's recent visit to Midgard, Loki had been keeping what mortals would refer to as a "low profile". He knew what the other Asgardians thought of him, but he paid them no mind as he set about his plan.

Sequestering him away in one of the darker corners of the golden realm, he searched high and low for a very specific item. "My niece failing was no surprise, but I must know for certain. How is it that my hated half-brother now possesses feminine curves? Odin himself cannot answer my question, and I dare not expose my schemes by inquiring," he mused as he slowly climbed down into a particularly dark and foreboding forest. "Ah-ha!" he exclaimed as he knelt down and snagged a handful of dry red leaves from a twisted and bent tree. "Perfect! With this these, I shall finally learn that imposter's secret!"

Retreating back to a hidden hut, the evil god ground the leaves into a fine powder and mixed them in with other ingredients in a large black pot. Setting a fire in the hearth, Loki careful placed the pot over the fire and watched as the smoke began to rise up from the bubbling liquid. "Show me what I desire!" he ordered as images began to play out upon the old stones.

Before him, he witnessed the same mortal woman that he encountered before finding a gnarled old stick and striking it against the ground. As she started to transform into a now recognizable form, he gasped in shock as he witnessed her changing back as the mystic hammer Mjolnir left her hand for an extended period of time. He stared dumbfounded as the scene played out again and again. Every time his hated half-brother's weapon was taken away from her, her form regressed to that of a puny mortal. "I can not believe it." he finally found the words as the scenes continued to play. "That imposter is not my half-brother at all! Why, these very stones have more of a kinship with me than that woman!" he started to cackle as a wicked plan formed in his mind. "I know her secret, and soon I shall be the one true heir to Odin. After all, does not these scene prove that I am his only son?" Loki laughed louder than he had in eons as he put the fire out. "Soon Jane Foster, soon, the god of Trickery shall darken your door!"

T

After her return, Thrud had also been busy. Upon informing High-Father Odin of what had transpired in the mortal realm, his reaction was to have her imprisoned for "trespassing and ignoring my orders". As she sat in the dungeons, she reflected on her past battle with the strange being known as Lady Thor.

She knew her uncle Loki had arranged for them to battle. She had tried to explain that fact to Odin, but the man's wrath was too strong for him to listen to reason. She didn't really care about what had happened to her father, but the woman who bore his name deserved no malice. "I must escape, but how?" The empty cell around her gave her neither comfort or aid.

LT

Jane put down her pencil as the door to the clinic opened. An old man limped towards her desk as she smiled brightly. "Good morning sir, how may I help you?"

The old man coughed nearly a full minute before answering. "I need a doctor please. I am in great pain." The man dropped his cane and gripped her desk for support.

Jane was immediately out of her chair and at the man's side. "Hang on sir, I'll call for Dr. Blake!"

The old man suddenly let go of the desk and wrapped both his arms around her. "Nay, I think such a lovely vision as thou is all the curing I need!" he grinned lecherously as his grip tightened.

"Let go of me or I'll scream!" Jane pleaded as her eyes darted towards her own cane propped up next to her chair.

"Could you? It would make my plan so much simpler." The old man said just as Dr. Don Blake entered the room.

"What's going on here?" he demanded. "Who the devil are you?"

"Merely an old friend" the old man chuckled as he let go of Jane long enough to wiggle his fingers at Dr. Blake. Don froze, his mouth in mid-sentence.

A cold bolt of realization hit Jane as the old man loosened his grip. "How, how did you do that? That's impossible!" she babbled as she started to back up.

The old man smiled. "My dear, few things are impossible for a god." With a wave of his hand, the features of the old man faded away and Jane found herself staring into the face of Loki. He smirked as he saw her grab her cane. "Really, bringing forth lighting and thunder inside a building? What would the neighbors say?"

Jane, her cane still gripped in her hand, stared at the mad god. "Alright, but what do you want?"

"The same thing I wanted the last time we battled: Revenge." Loki's grin grew wider. With a snap of his fingers, Dr. Blake floated across the room and shrank. Loki calmly picked up the miniaturized figure and slipped him into his pocket. "I propose a contest. Meet me at that park where we fought."

"What about Dr. Blake?"

"Who, him? Oh, I suppose I'll let him go if you manage to defeat me." Loki's smile was so wide it threatened to split his face as he walked out the door. Jane stood by in a helpless rage as she saw the god vanish into the mass of people outside.

Quickly locking up, Jane caught the first available cab. As the checkered vehicle made its way through the busy traffic, Jane tried to think of a plan of attack. "How can I do anything while he has Don with him?" she thought as idea after idea failed in her mind. Loki would no doubt have a counter to any plan she could think of, not to mention the fact that he had time to prepare this whole plot. Her stomach felt like it was turning to water as the cab weaved its way in and out of traffic. She smiled when the cabbie looked back at her, but she ignored the man's words. She clutched her cane as the car pulled up to the curb. Strangely, she thought back to her father recounting the story of his landing on the beaches of Normandy. "I wonder if he felt anything like this?" she wondered as she paid the driver and stepped out of the cab.

Walking through the park, she failed to see anything out of the ordinary, which made her suspicious. As she pressed deeper into the interior of the park, the familiar mocking tone of Loki echoed through the trees. "I had nearly given up hope sister. Please, shed thy ridiculous mortal guise and battle me as a Asgardian."

She could not see Loki, but she knew that didn't matter. The evil trickster could easily be the trees themselves or the very grass she walked upon. "You wish to battle me sky-walker? So be it!" she uttered as she tapped her cane on the ground once. As the familiar lighting flashed and thunder rolled, Jane Foster was quickly replaced with the towering form of Lady Thor, goddess of thunder. The transformation was quicker than last time. Jane felt a light tingling across her body as her clothing vanished and her muscles swelled. Once the tingling ceased, she was once again clad in her uniform. "Base trickster, release the mortal Blake!" she ordered as the sounds of thunder had started to draw a crowd.

Loki stepped out from behind a tree. His manner was calm and his stride slow. "The more I look at you, the more I wonder. How is it that you, a mere mortal, have come to wield my half-brother's hammer so well?"

Lady Thor, in response, began to twirl her hammer. "Release the mortal Trickster, else mine hammer shall split thy skull in twine!"

Loki smiled at the threat. "Thou even have his crude tongue. Truly thou art Thor reborn." He glibly walked towards her with his hands outstretched. "Worry not about yon mortals. A barrier shall shield our battle from praying eyes." His smile never wavered as she let her hammer fly towards his head. For his part, Loki causally moved his head to the side and let the hammer fly past him harmlessly. "Oh, least I forget, here is thy paramour."

A blinding flash forced Lady Thor to cover her eyes. Once the light had faded, Dr. Blake stood before her. "Don!" she cried as she saw Mjolnir hurtling back towards her, with the still hypnotized Dr. Blake directly in its path.

Thinking quickly, she leapt forward and grabbed the mesmerized man and threw him aside, but just as she was prepared to catch her hammer, a black mystical bolt flew through the air and enveloped it. Mjolnir continued in its path and struck her hand, but to her horror she found that she was unable to touch it.

The bolt had formed a solid box all around Mjolnir, completely preventing her from grabbing it. The box dropped to the ground and held fast as she battered away at the inky darkness. "What foul magic is this?" she cried.

"It happens to be a perfectly fair trick my would-be sister." Looking down at her as he started to ascend into the sky, Loki added "Fear not, my barrier shall not vanish nor my spell over yon mortal weaken until well after ye are restored to a weakling mortal. I would not dream of having anyone else interrupt my game." Loki said with a smile. He sailed over the trees and out of sight as she impotently slammed her fists against the black box.

Lady Thor's mind was reeling as the seconds ticked away. She tried lifting the box, but found that whatever enchantment Loki has used was also keeping affixed to the ground. After 30 seconds of pounding, digging, and swearing, she sat back on the grass. She tried willing the hammer to return to her, but the box didn't even so much as lift an inch.

She stood up and tried to think of a plan when she felt dizzy. "Oh no, my time is running out!" Lady Thor panicked as she started to run. She dashed past the still dazed Dr. Blake and headed for the relative cover of the trees. She was still aware of what Loki said, but she didn't feel any relief over his words. Her uniform faded away as her muscles and features slowly shifted back to the weaker form of Jane Foster. Her regular clothes appeared a second later as she saw Dr. Blake stumbling around in a daze.

D

Dr. Blake looked around. The last thing he could recall, he had just stepped out of his office. Now he was in the park. His cane was nowhere to be found. A perfect understatement to his feelings would be to say that he was confused. Feeling a hand grip his arm, he turned around to stare into the tear filled eyes of a familiar face. "Jane? What are we doing out here?" She barely said as a word as she collapsed into his arms. The sounds of her sobbing told him that perhaps he should ask another time.

L

Loki stepped lightly down onto the corner of a busy intersection. He made himself invisible to the mortal eye, but he reversed the spell on a whim. "I must see and be seen" he thought as the startled gasps of the people made him laugh. Spying a hotdog vendor gave him a wicked idea. "It has been far too long since I have enjoyed myself" his thoughts drifted back to his days as a young god and the merriment he enjoyed, most of often at the expense of his fellows.

With a simple gesture, Loki uttered a spell that caused the condiments upon the man's cart to suddenly explode upward. The tubes of ketchup and mustard emptied their contents in a geyser-like fountain as the processed meat suddenly began to thrash around as if alive. The vendor and his customers ran shrieking as the meat began to slither on the pavement towards them.

"What fun!" Loki cackled as drivers, desperate to avoid the panicking pedestrians, drove their cars into each other. As a sedan ran over the curb and struck a fire hydrant, Loki's laughter ceased as the water rained down on him. "Bah, this is not fitting a for a god." With a snap of his fingers, the water suddenly turned into a foamy golden brew. Loki eagerly opened his mouth as he swallowed the drink. "Hardly equal to the mead of my foolish father's table, but adequate." After he drunk his fill, he stepped away as a crowd rushed towards the raining alcohol. "Nay mortals, even this substandard concoction is too rich for your unworthy tongues." He smirked as he revered the effects of the spell just as the first wino cupped his hands to collect the falling booze. The man cried angrily as the mead turned to mud in his hands.

"What else should I do?" Loki thought as he walked away from the chaos he created. "It has been centuries since I've enjoyed myself in such a fashion." Taking to the air again, Loki flew to the other side of the city as emergency vehicles raced into the area. "And with that fool mortal relieved of her powers, I know of no other mortal who could withstand my power."

Landing in an affluent neighborhood, Loki admired himself in the polished surface of a car that was parked nearby. "Truly, these strange little creatures have improved their smith skills considerably since last I walked among them."

"Ok Mack, back away from the rolls!" a gruff voice ordered. Loki slowly turned around to see a massive figure dressed in the traditional uniform of a chauffeur. A rail thin man stood almost completely hidden behind the man.

"Another vagrant Archibald? Deal with him please. Mr. Hilton is expecting us at the club within the hour." The little man yawned as his chauffeur cracked his knuckles.

"With pleasure Mr. Knox." The square-jawed lug gripped Loki with one hand and slammed his meaty paw into the bored god's face. As his fist connected, Loki's head snapped back and fell off. The severed appendage bounced off the pavement once before coming to a stop.

"What fun! Shall I return the favor?" Loki asked as his headless body slipped out of the horrified driver's hand and bent over to grab his head. To the two terrified humans, the headless body casually picked up the head and placed it on top of \ the neck as easily as if one of them were trying on a hat.

"Archibald, I think I'll stay home today!" Mr. Knox muttered as he ran back inside his home. Archibald, for his part, only thought of one thing as he barreled past the heavy door and dashed into the relative safety of the house.

"I should have never left Hoboken!"

JF

Jane, after calling a taxi, had reopened the clinic and was busy listening to the radio. Her sadness at having lost the power of Thor gave way to anger. "I lost, there's no other way to say it. Loki was better than me that time, but next time I am going to have to be better than him." She scribbled notes as she fiddled with the radio knobs. The announcer was franticly detailing Loki's rampage. So far, there had no success of stopping the trickster. All conventional weaponry had failed utterly, but the announcer was quick to stress that no one should panic.

Loki's voice interrupted the announcers'. "On the contrary, I think it would be best if everyone in this city would panic."

Jane turned the dial off in disgust. "He has my hammer locked in that infernal box. I can't open it, and I can't break it." As she sat and stared out into the panic filled streets, an idea came to her. "Loki cast the spell, so it makes sense that he would be the one to undo it. And I think I know how to trick that trickster."

"Would you look at all that chaos," Dr. Blake sighed as he exited his office. "How can anyone defeat that monster?"

"I'm sure Lady Thor can come up with something." Jane offered as she opened her desk drawer and removed the phone book.

"I'm not so sure. If she was capable of stopping Loki, then why hasn't she done something?"

"There must be a reason Don." Jane said without looking up. Flipping through pages, she stopped when she found the number she was looking for, just as a mass of panicked people stampeded by the clinic's doors.

"I'm sure, but I'm afraid whatever you're doing will have to wait." He said as he took her hand just as she was about to dial. "Right now those people need us. Grab whatever supplies you can carry and meet me out front."

Jane hopelessly looked on at the chaos just outside. Cars had wrecked on streets that had been changed into taffy. People stampeded like cattle as their shoes became alive and attacked their feet. Putting the receiver gently back onto the cradle, Jane silently nodded her head and followed Dr. Blake. "How can I get away without him knowing?" She tried to come up with a plan as she rushed outside. To see the doctor, even with his bum leg, stopping to help apply a splint to a milkman's broken leg, she made up her mind. "No more lies. If I were honest, then maybe this wouldn't have happened."

L

Loki yawned as he flew through the air. "Amazing, after all that merriment I'm bored. Perhaps a trip across the globe can raise my spirits." He sailed through the sky towards the horizon. Zipping past both land and sea, he slowed to a halt over a sea of ice as he spied a large airplane flying overhead. "Hmm, what jest shall I play upon yon mortals?" A plan began to form as the plane continued on its path, unaware of the possible danger that lurked below.

The plane, if had Loki bothered to look, was a Russian bomber. The crew, having maintained radio silence since take-off, opened their orders as they continued to fly over the Artic Ocean. The pilot silently looked over the encoded document before crumpling it up and eating it. Nodding to the cartographer, who in turn nodded to the crew in the hold, he sat back in his chair as he thought about their mission.

Within their hold was a bomb. The Party members had high hopes for their cargo, and each of them knew how much their lives would be worth if the bomb were to go off before they reached the proper site. The payload, they were told, would be fifty times more powerful than the hated West's Gamma bomb.

Even though he knew it was against the rules, the pilot silently said a prayer as the bomb dropped. It sailed through the air with a slight whistle as it hurtled towards the ice. Such an explosion would be visible on the American's radar, but hopefully it would not detonate until his crew cleared the area.

Loki marveled at the large egg shaped thing that the plane dropped. He flew directly toward it and placed his hands on it as it plummeted. "Hmm, perhaps this object is important, and those poor souls are unaware that it dropped. It would most cruel of me to standby and let their precious cargo be damaged."

Tapping on the metal hull as he chanted a spell, Loki smiled as the bomb hit the ice with a thud and rolled into the sea.

Up in the plane, the crew's reaction was not the kind that Loki had expected. The pilot's brow began to resemble a waterfall as he saw the bomb splash into the water. "Oh, Comrade Nikita isn't going to like this." He muttered as he cursed that his prayer had been taken too literally.

JF

Jane looked around at the destruction that had been left in Loki's wake. Rescue crews and mobile hospitals had already been set up, and Governor Rockefeller had already called in the National Guard. Jane wiped her brow as she finished sewing up a particularly nasty gash on a youngster just as Dr. Blake walked past. "I could slip away," she thought as she moved to another cot and checked on the patient. "I already have it planned, and Loki needs to be stopped before this happens again." Other medical personal had mobilized, and the most serious cases were being taken to the hospitals. "But how can I leave without it looking like I'm coward? I'd hate to pull the old 'fainting female' bit, plus if I dropped that might attract more attention."

As she tried to figure a way out of her dilemma, an ear-piercing scream broke through air. Rushing out into the street, she saw the reason for the panic: Loki had returned. The police and the Guard began to mobilize as she slowly slipped into the crowd. "I can explain all of this to Don later. Right now I have to put an end to this madness."

Moving into the sea of people, she signaled a cab and hoped the owners of a certain costume shop weren't enjoying a late lunch…

L

Loki zipped and weaved through the air like a missile. "Bah! I grow weary of this sport. Perhaps I should bring my dear sister back, just for a few moments." Loki shook his head as he thought of the idea. "Nay, t'was luck that bested her. Even I know not to tempt the Norns. Still, it could not hurt if I were to check and see if that blasted hammer is still where I left it."

Loki slowly made his way back towards the park. He was in no rush, as he knew his spell would hold. He felt a twinge of fear, however, as he neared the trees. This mortal woman had bested him once before, so it was quite possible that she could somehow find a way to counteract his spell. "Why is it I am always plagued by these feelings of fear when I should be conquering?" Loki chastised himself as he touched down once again upon the grass. " I know the spell held, and that fool of a sibling could never" Loki's thoughts can to a sudden stop as he spied a familiar figure standing before the box. "You!" He screamed.

"Aye, trickster," Lady Thor answered as her blond locks flowed in the wind. "Your paltry magics have failed you my brother. Come, let us battle as proper warriors."

Loki stood still as he saw the hammer clasped in the figure's hand. "How can this be possible?" he panicked as he saw the figure raise the hammer. "That accursed thing is trapped, trapped!" With a wave of his hand, Loki undid the spell, and that was when a cold realization hit him.

J

Jane felt as if she had sweated five pounds off. Her luck held out as she vanished into the crowd and found a cab capable of taking to her destination: A costume shop that boasted of being able to create costumes so good that a person would be indistinguishable from the genuine article. She had spent several harried minutes arguing and bartering with the owner, but as she lugged her prize out to the cab, she hoped it would be enough.

The dummy certainly looked like Lady Thor. Her struggle to get the oversized doppelganger had damped her mood. Would Loki be fooled? She felt ridiculous hauling the hollow figure through the park, and she hoped her voice wouldn't quiver too much as she set the faux Lady Thor up near the mystic box. As she spied Loki soaring through the air, she counted down from ten and prayed her plan would work.

L

Loki reversed the spell. His confusion was almost palatable when he saw the mystic Mjolnir exactly where he had left it. "But, I saw your transformation, how can ye regain thy godly form without the aid of Mjolnir?"

His confusion gave way to rage when the figure of Lady Thor suddenly toppled over and the lithe form of Jane Foster darted out from behind the mannequin. Before he could repeat the spell, Jane had already wrapped her fingers around the hammer's grip. "No!" he shouted before a flashing light blinded him.

J

Jane shook as the power flowed back into her. She couldn't conceal her grin as her body swelled with the strange force. Faster than a blink of an eye, plain Jane Foster was no more. In her place stood Lady Thor.

"Now villain, we shall end this."

Loki fumed and swore as Lady Thor approached him. "Impossible! A dummy? A simple wooden statue should not be enough to trick me, me! The trickster!" Loki stared at her. His eyes were twin portals of hatred and rage the likes of which few mortals could comprehend. "I shall not be undone by this, thunderer, nay, Loki shall prove to be the most powerful!"

"I say nay," Lady Thor countered as she began to twirl her hammer before her. "Thy magic is most powerful brother, but even your spells and tricks can not withstand the true force of a warrior born."

Loki sneered as his fists crackled with lighting. "A warrior born? Thou art no more a proper Asgardian than yon imitation." He spat on the fallen dummy. "Thor reborn perhaps, but mortal blood still flows within thy veins." His sneer turned into an evil grin. "And I shall spill every drop of it."

He tightened his grip and swung a fist out. Instead of merely punching at the air, a bolt of pure mystical force leapt off his clinched fingers. Lady Thor blocked the attack by brining her hammer up. The bolt struck and splintered, burning the grass around her. With a mighty roar, she charged the evil god and threw her hammer with all her strength. Mjolnir snag through the air as it flew and struck Loki. The trickster sailed back from the blow as the hammer retuned to its mistress's hand. Loki crashed into a nearby tree so hard the tree split in two as he struggled to rise.

Weakly sitting up, Loki tried another tactic. "Wait! Clearly you are not Thor. There is no reason why we should battle. Why not join with me? We can do whatever you want!" He smiled through the pain as he rose to his feet. "Have the mortals worship us, or not. We could go to Asgard. I bet you've never been there, have you?"

Lady Thor stopped in her tracks. "Nay, yet I do recall the golden spires of my father's hall." The confusion was evident in tone and on her face. How could she recall something she had never seen? Her steps faltered as she suddenly saw a grim and one-eyed visage of a man she knew, yet never saw before.

Loki took advantage of the confusion to move closer to the distracted hero. "Aye, perhaps this is another enchantment of my father. I could find the truth, if you desire." Loki slowly reached out and touched her arm.

"No!" The touch was enough to snap her back to reality. With one hand she gripped Loki by the throat, and with the other she slammed Mjolnir into his face. Loki thrashed like a snake in her grip. With his frees hands, he used spell after spell on her as he struggled.

Blinded, Lady Thor felt her grip loosen as Loki fired a bolt into her eyes. "Perhaps I was wrong to show mercy. I won't make that mistake again!" he swore as the magic danced across his fingers and the sky grew dark. Thunder began to rumble as rain started to fall. Loki wiped the blood away from his mouth as he stared another incantation. The air grew heavy with ozone as lighting crackled.

Reeling and blind, Lady Thor fell to her knees as lighting struck a nearby tree. Above the dim, Loki could have sworn he heard her laugh. "You mock me?"

"Aye."

The storm increased in its fury as more lighting danced across the sky. Without saying a word, Lady Thor tapped her hammer upon the ground three times. Realization slowly sunk as Loki realized just what he had given to his enemy. "The perfect weapon" he muttered as the blinded goddess sent her hammer flying towards him, with all the power of the storm right behind it.

Mjolnir crashed into him hard enough to lift him off of his feet. The lighting that followed sent him flying upward even further. He screamed in both rage and pain, as he was carried further and further away from the park. He sailed past the buildings of mankind and up through the clouds. The hammer continued on its path as the lighting slowly burned itself out. Through the pain, Loki managed a weak grin as Mjolnir suddenly stopped in its flight and turned back around. He plummeted from the endless void until he landed before the feet of Heimdall. The guardian of the Rainbow Bridge stared at the scorched and injured god in disbelief as Loki forced himself up to his knees. "Take me to my father, quickly! For I have the gravest of news for him."

Loki, despite the agony of his wounds, almost smiled as the astonished guardian helped him to his feet. "The plan may have changed, but I suppose I should thank that mortal wench. She has proven to be a bigger aid than the real Thor." Devious plans formed under his brow, as he was loaded into a waiting cart and rushed to Odin, all the while complaining about the horrible nature of his wounds yet demanding that he first speak with Odin before seeing a healer.

LT

Lady Thor, her vision slowly returning, tapped Mjolnir again to banish the storm and once more to return to the mortal form of Jane Foster. Once the sky was clear and her body was back to its former state, Jane wearily stood up. Her eyesight was fully restored, and she bore no sign of the injuries that Loki inflicted upon her, yet she felt tired. Looking down at the walking stick in her hand, she had a brief flash of an angry one-eyed man looming over her. "Loki is a trickster, but the worst tricks involve the truth to some extent. I know I am not Thor, yet why am I haunted by these feelings and images?" She slowly made her back through the now fully deserted park

Walking past the scenes of destruction, her thoughts grew darker. "What if Loki was right? What if this power wasn't meant for me? And if not me, then who?" She grimaced as she stepped into a puddle of ice cream that was once a Greyhound bus. "I don't want to give this power up, but what if the real Thor comes back? Will we be enemies?"

Making her way back towards the clinic, she sighed as her thoughts went into a more personal realm. "And what about Don?" She knew he would be furious with her for leaving during an emergency, but she did have an answer for her disappearance.

"Jane!" Dr. Blake shouted. He moved through the crowd as fast as he could. Jane stopped and collected both her thoughts and her breath. She could tell he was furious the second she heard him. "I can't believe you would do something like that!" He began, but Jane held her hand up.

"Dr. Blake, I know what I did flew in the face of the oath I swore, but I have a reason for my actions."

"Oh? And what are they?" He asked, a look of skepticism upon his face.

"I…I can't tell you now." She moved in closer and whispered in his ear. "But please, trust me. Tonight, my place or yours?"

Whatever argument or retort Don could come up with died on the spot. He stammered for an answer as the city slowly went on with business. "Um, my place would be fine. Say around eight?"

Jane breathed a sigh of relief. It looked like to Don that a huge weight had been lifted off of her shoulders. "Thank you. I know this may seem strange, but I can explain everything tonight. Please, believe me, this is going to sound strange, but everything will be explained tonight. I promise.

L

Loki staged before Odin and threw himself before the throne. "Oh high father, I bring terrible tidings!"

Odin, his grim visage never changing, leaned in from his throne. "Speak my son. I am told you battled on Midgard. Why?"

"Because father" Loki swooned, "because I too heard speak of a mere mortal wench usurping the noble name of my own brother and using his power for her own ends."

"I see, and thy wounds are a result of this wench?"

"Aye father, a terrible battle we did rage, but she used tactics most foul! I was lucky to have escaped with my life. Father, forgive me for breaking your law, but I had to see if the rumors were true."

"Thou were always trouble for me and my realm my son, but in this matter I can not hold you to blame." Rising from his seat of power, Odin raised his voice as the court assembled before him. "Hear me! From this moment on, none shall be permitted to walk among the mortals. Upon the threat of death, the realm of Midgard is now forbidden to all." He marched down the steps of the dais and past the throng of people. Before he left the hall, he stopped and looked down at the still kneeling Loki. "Go to the healers my son. My heart is heavy with the burden you have delivered to me, but I am thankful all the same."

Loki said not a word as he was helped out of the hall. Odin silently watched the injured god leave before exiting to a small chamber back behind the throne. He closed the door behind him and removed his helmet. A single tear rolled down his check as he fell to his knees in grief. "I have damned my son."

LT

Later that night, as promised, Jane arrived at the residence of Dr. Don Blake. She gripped the gnarled cane tightly as she ascended the stairs to his apartment. "Ok, moment of truth. Too late to back out now." She tried to calm herself as she knocked on the door. Just hearing Don's voice from the other side almost made her jump.

"Coming!" Don's face peered at her from behind the door as he undid the chain and welcomed her inside. "Alright," he began as he closed the door and turned around. "So what exactly is this big secret you have to tell me?"

Jane looked around the apartment. For all the time she had known him, she had never seen where he had lived. The place was small, almost Spartan, with medical journals and books scattered about. Walking towards the window, she opened it, but made sure to keep the curtains closed. "Don, we've known each other for a while, yes?"

"Yes, we have, but what does that have to do with anything?"

"Don, why did you take me with you on that trip to Norway?"

Don looked puzzled as he sat down. "Well, I," he stammered, "I thought I would need someone with medical experience, given my health, and you said you always wanted to travel"

"Also, haven't you wondered why I started carrying this old walking stick around with me everywhere I go?"

"Well the thought had crossed my mind."

"Well Dr. Blake, tonight I am going to show you."

Walking over to the window, Jane snuck a quick look outside before turning around to face the puzzled doctor. She slowly counted down to ten before striking her cane once upon the ground. She could see Don's look of puzzlement quickly turn into a look of horror…

Don had seen a few strange sights during his medical career, but the sight of his nurse swinging her cane around like Ruth made him question her sanity. As the gnarled piece of wood hit the carpet, he was about to reproach her for annoying his neighbors when the lighting struck. He threw his arm over his face as he tried to run forward, but his bum leg simply would not allow that. He pitched forward onto the floor as he thought for sure his nurse was being electrocuted.

The air smelled like something had been fried. Don refused to open his eyes at first, but he forced himself to when he heard the sound of footsteps. "She's alive! I've got to stabilize her, then call the ER!" he thought as he looked up.

His mouth dropped open at the sight before him.

Instead of a woman suffering from massive third degree burns, before him stood a literal goddess. Lady Thor looked sheepishly at him as she hooked her hammer onto her belt. "Hello Don. Does this explain where I've been running off to?"

"Oh my god." Don numbly said as the truth of the moment sank in. "You were…Lady Thor? The whole time?"

"Aye."

Don felt his limbs grow weak. "I don't believe it." Lady Thor, or Jane, he corrected himself, strode over to him and picked him up as easily as he lifted a magazine.

"I'll explain more, but right now, there is something I have been longing for far too long."

Before Don could say anything, the goddess of thunder pulled him in close and planted a kiss on him that left him breathless. The questions that he had fled his mind as he decided that there were a lot worse things then sharing a passionate embrace with the two women he loved, even if they were the same person.

The end

Journey Into a Mailbox

Well folks, another day another story. Mailbag is a little light this time around, but I'll make up for it with some credits and some coming attractions. This particular story was based on "Vengeance of Loki", which was first published in Journey Into Mystery #88 (January 1963) and credited to Stan Lee (writer), Jack Kirby (art), Dick Ayers (inks), and Art Simek (letters).

Next time around, be here when we'll see "The Thunder God and the Thug", a story that'll leave you on the edge of your seat! (So scoot back when you read it)

Upcoming works:

Amazing Adventures #2-The World Below!

Tales to Astonish #4-Betrayed by the Ants!

Sensational Comics #6-The Hulk VS the Metal Master!


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